Not Anymore
by sirensong15
Summary: She could never understand why he was always alone, never playing or talking to anyone. Well, one day she decided to change that.
1. Chapter 1

**Well, there's really no other way to describe this except just a short, cute one-shot. Hope you enjoy! :)**

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><p>She would always wonder why he would just sit there on the edge of the playground, all alone, staring blankly at the ground. Sometimes he would look at the sky, his eyes following the moving clouds overhead.<p>

It seemed like he was always alone. She came to the park's playground almost every day with her sister, and her father or brother would watch them. She would watch him suddenly get up and walk away, leaving without any parents or siblings. He would never look back, so he never saw her frowning at his retreating form.

She honestly didn't know what to think of him. It seemed like so many of the boys wanted him to play with them, but he never did. He simply shook his head no. There were even more girls that tried to talk to him. They would all gather around him, try to talk to him, and to feel his hair. When he would look up at them and tell them to stop, they would walk away blushing and giggling.

"Karin, Yuzu, it's time to go home!" her father called out, standing from the bench that he was sitting on nearby. Yuzu ran to him immediately, hugging his leg and smiling at him. He ruffled her hair in return. Karin glanced back at the boy one more time before running back to her father. As they were walking home, Karin decided that she would talk to him tomorrow, so that maybe she could understand him.

He saw the dark-haired girl leave with her sister, and walked home soon after.

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As soon as Karin got to the park, she ran to the playground and looked for him. She couldn't see him, and she began to feel disappointed, thinking he didn't come today. A light breeze suddenly blew, and she could hear the leaves of the trees rustling. She turned her eyes toward the tree that was closest to the playground, and saw him sitting under the it, hands behind his head. She smiled to herself and began to walk over to him, and stopped a couple of feet in front of him.

"So, why are you sittin' here all by yourself?" Karin asked him. She didn't expect a reply, since he never really talked to anyone else. A few moments went by, and he still hadn't acknowledged her, so she turned around and began to walk back the way she came. She only took four steps before she heard a voice.

"Because I like to."

At the sound of his voice, she immediately turned back toward him. She walked the few steps back to be in front of him. She looked down to see his face, and gazed into the most beautiful teal eyes she had ever seen.

"Why? Don't you ever get lonely?" Karin asked, tilting her head to the side just slightly. He looked up at her for a few moments before shrugging his shoulders.

"Not really. I'm pretty much always by myself anyway. It doesn't really bother me anymore." He closed his eyes and leaned back against the tree once again. She frowned at his response. Then, a thought suddenly came to her, and she smiled to herself. She immediately plopped herself down right beside him.

"Not anymore," Karin said. He opened his eyes again, and raised a brow at her in question.

"What?"

"I meant that you're not gonna be by yourself anymore," she stated with conviction. He narrowed his eyes a fraction before chuckling.

"I'm not?" he asked rhetorically.

"Nope. From now on I'll be with you." At her words, they both looked deeply into one another's eyes for a long time. Finally, he broke their gaze and looked around the park.

"Fine. Do whatever you want," he said in an almost bored tone. She only leaned back against the tree trunk and smiled. They sat there for a while in silence, just enjoying the beautiful afternoon weather. Karin thought that sitting beside each other and not speaking would be a little uncomfortable, since it was with her other friends, but it was just the opposite. It was very peaceful. She let her eyelids fall closed and relaxed.

After about ten minutes of not speaking, felt something hit his shoulder. He opened his eyes, looked down, and saw that she had fallen asleep. He smiled as his eyes took in her peaceful features.

"Karin! Yuzu! It's time to go!" Isshin called out. The boy looked over toward the playground to see a girl with blond hair run over to her father. He then glanced down at the dark-haired girl still sleeping on his shoulder. He really hated to wake her up.

"Hey," he said, gently shaking her shoulder. "You need to wake up. Your father is calling you."

"Huh?" Karin asked, her voice a little deeper from sleep. She lifted her head off of his shoulder and looked into his eyes. She looked at him for a few seconds before her eyes widened in realization. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep on you. You probably hate me now, don't you?"

"Yes, I do," he said seriously. Karin's facial expression immediately changed to one of sorrow. "I was just kidding. I don't hate you." Karin smiled quickly before punching him in the arm.

"You're a jerk, you know that?" she replied. He only smirked at her.

"I know." They looked at each other for a few minutes before starting to laugh. They would have laughed for a while longer, but Karin's father called for her again. Karin looked over and saw her family waiting for her. She stood up and looked at him.

"I've got to go, but before I go, we should at least know each other's names. I'm Karin," she held out her hand for him to shake. The snowy-haired boy stood up and took her hand into his.

"I'm Toshiro."

"Well Toshiro, I'll see you tomorrow. After all, I made you a promise that you won't be alone anymore. And when I make a promise, I never go back on my word." She smiled at him and they let go of the other's hand. She turned and began to run toward her father.

He turned around and began to walk home, a smile adorning his face the entire way.

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The next day, as soon as they got to the park, Karin ran toward the tree that Toshiro was sitting under the day before. She got near it, and he wasn't there. She turned around to see if he was on the playground, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Toshiro," Karin said in a raised voice. She didn't get an answer, but something hit her on the back of the head. "That hurt," she mumbled, and bent down to pick up the little pebble that hit the ground. She looked at it questioningly before looking up into the tree and narrowing her eyes up at him. He was sitting on a branch, smirking down at her, and holding another pebble between his fingers.

"So I see you came back," Toshiro said, more as a statement than a question.

"Of course I came back. I told you I would," Karin replied, and started to climb the tree. Toshiro was impressed by how well she could climb. It didn't take long before she reached the branch that he was sitting on, and pulled herself up to sit beside him. "So Toshiro, how long have you been up here?"

"Not too long. I climbed up here right before it got loud." She looked at him strangely after she heard his reply.

"How old are you, Toshiro?"

"I'm seven. Why?" She began to laugh, which only made him get confused. He raised a brow at her antics, and she eventually stopped laughing enough to speak.

"No one would think you're seven with the way you talk. You sound like an old man," Karin said happily, still laughing slightly.

"I am not an old man," Toshiro huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Sure you are," she replied. She reached up and ruffled his hair. "You've even got the white hair to prove it." She started to laugh again, and he looked at her once more before starting to climb down the tree. When she saw him going down, she stopped laughing and grabbed his hand that was still gripping the branch that she was sitting on. She pulled hard on his hand, silently telling him to come back up. He did climb back up, but when he sat down he narrowed his eyes at her in anger and crossed his arms over his chest once again.

"I'm sorry, Toshiro. I didn't mean those things I said. I was only teasing you," Karin said apologetically. "Besides, I like your hair. It's different than everybody else's."

"Alright, I accept your apology," Toshiro said, the anger dissipating quickly from his voice and posture. "How old are you, Karin?"

"I'm seven, the same as you," she said, smiling at him. "Why?" He uncrossed his arms and shrugged.

"I figured since you asked me how old I was, it was only fair that I get to know how old you are. Plus, you don't really act like the other girls that are our age, either."

"Is that a good thing?" Karin asked worriedly. Toshiro looked into her eyes, and could see the beginnings of doubt forming. He was going to tease her, but after seeing the way she was looking at him, he didn't want to seriously hurt her feelings.

"It's a very good thing," he said, smiling at her. She smiled back at him, and they both looked out onto the playground from the spaces in the leaves and branches. They sat in silence for a while, just merely enjoying the other's company, but they also talked for a long time. Even though they had only met yesterday, they were well on their way to becoming best friends. Too soon, they heard her father calling for her and her sister again. They both climbed down the braches and jumped the rest of the way to reach the bottom. Once their feet touched the ground, Karin turned to face Toshiro. Before she could think too much about it, she leaned forward and kissed his cheek. When she pulled back, she could see him starting to blush.

"What was that for?" he asked, turning his head to look at her. She could feel heat forming on her cheeks as well from the intensity of his gaze.

"Think of it as another part of my apology from earlier. Well, I better get going. I'll see you tomorrow!" Karin smiled and waved at him before turning around and running toward her father and twin sister.

Toshiro watched her leave until he could no longer see her before beginning to walk home, a smile on his face and a warm feeling in his heart.

"I guess I won't be alone after all."

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><p><strong>Well, I said that it was short, but it's like once I started writing this, I just couldn't stop! If enough people want it, I might continue this as a series of related one-shots about Toshiro and Karin being kids and growing up. And as for my other stories, no I didn't abandon them. The next chapter of Can't Fight This Feeling should be out by Monday at the latest, and I'll explain myself in the AN there. Anyway, please tell me what you thought of this! :) **


	2. Seating Arrangements 10-27-2014

**So, I've decided to continue this as a series of loosely-interconnected one-shots. I'll post the date alongside the chapter names. The updates will not be on a certain schedule, and will vary in length. Even so, I hope you readers enjoy them! **

**Just to give you a short background on this one, it takes place a few days after the first scene of Karin and Toshiro in the park. Also, please look over any typing errors, as I was really exhausted when I wrote this. **

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><p>Seating Arrangements<p>

"Karin, Yuzu, have a good day at school, okay?" their orange-haired older brother said as he walked them to their school.

"We will. Bye Ichigo!" the Kurosaki twins said at the same time. They stood still and waved at their older brother until he was out of sight. Karin began walking into the elementary school building, expecting her younger sibling to follow her. Yuzu stood staring off into the distance for a moment longer before running to catch up to her dark-haired twin.

"Why were you staring at nothing like that?" Karin asked once Yuzu was beside her.

"I don't know, but I get the feeling that something good's gonna happen today!" Yuzu beamed, smiling a wide smile as they reached their destination. Yuzu, in her giddy state, got to the door of their second grade classroom first and entered, not seeing the questioning look her twin was giving her. They both went to put their backpacks away, get their books and homework out, and returned to their desks. Karin's desk was to the left of Yuzu's, and they were in the third row.

"What do you mean, Yuzu?" Karin asked, but before her sister could form a reply, the bell rang, signaling the start of the school day. Their teacher entered the classroom, put her things down, and called roll.

"Now class, today we're doing something different," Ms. Takahashi said, and was met with groans from pretty much every student. "Oh, don't be like that. This could be a

good thing or bad thing, and it all depends on you. We are having a new seating arrangement starting today. Everyone will sit in pairs of two, and I will pick where each pair will sit." Their teacher let the information sink in for a few moments. The students began to talk amongst themselves excitedly. Before they could get too wrapped up in their conversations about potential seating outcomes, however, a hand rose.

"Yes Toshiro? Did you have a question?"

Upon hearing their teacher speak, all of the talking stopped. They all followed her line of vision to a snowy-haired boy sitting in the back row. Also, even though it was only a couple of months into the school year, whenever he spoke everyone would listen to him. Karin had guessed as to why this was a few days after classes had begun. She had reasoned that the all the girls listened because each of them had crushes on him, and the boys listened because they respected him and liked his attitude.

"You did not explain if the person we are to sit by is chosen by us or by you," Toshiro stated calmly, as if he had thought of this before their teacher had explained how they would sit. Ms. Takahashi smile at him briefly.

"Very good, Toshiro. I was hoping one of you would catch on to that detail," Ms. Takahashi announced. "I will let you pick who you want to sit by. Each of you take out a piece of paper and write down the name of the person you would most like to sit by. You can only put down one name. If it doesn't matter to you who you sit by, then you may write that. Once you're done, fold them and bring them to my desk, alright?"

The students all nodded, and thought about who they wanted to sit by. They each wrote down a name, folded the paper, and placed it on the teacher's desk.

"Alright, I will look over these and we will fix the seating arrangement after lunch. Now then, let's open our science books to page 38. . . ."

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Once the students left the classroom for lunch, Ms. Takahashi decided that she would eat her lunch in her room to look over the notes that her students wrote that morning. She began looking through them. Some of them did not surprise her, but quite a few of them did. It seemed that all of the girls, except for Karin and Yuzu Kurosaki, had written down Toshiro Hitsugaya as the person they most wanted to sit by. Karin and Yuzu had both written down that it didn't matter who they sat by. When she reached the end of the stack, however, she was really surprised. There, written in the snowy-haired boy's rather elegant-looking script, was a name.

_Karin Kurosaki_

The second grade class returned from lunch about a half hour later, and were eager to see who they would be sitting by. Ms. Takahashi greeted them at the door.

"Alright class, I have already moved you into pairs. If this arrangement does not work, then we will try another way. Everyone go in and find your desk."

The students went in as quickly as they could, scrambling around the room in a sort of organized chaos. Karin found her desk rather easily, as it was toward the back of the classroom. She looked to see if Yuzu had found her desk and who she was sitting by. It seemed that her sister was only a row in front of her, sitting by another girl who was smiling as wide as her sister was. Karin was glad that her sister had a good seating partner. She continued to look around the room. Most of the boys appeared happy with their partners, but many of the girls looked rather disappointed, like they wanted to sit next to someone else. She started to wonder who they really wanted to sit by, but before she could attempt to give it any thought, the owner of the desk beside hers pulled out their chair and sat down. The first thing she saw was bright, teal eyes. She smiled, making the boy beside her blush lightly.

"So, I guess this means we're sitting together, right Toshiro?"

"Yes," Toshiro said, a small smile on his face. "I suppose it does."


End file.
